:Salesforce Marketing Cloud
{{Short description|Digital marketing automation provider}}
{{Good article}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Salesforce Marketing Cloud
| logo = Sf-marketingcloud-logo.png
| logo_size = 220px
| founder = Peter McCormick, Scott Dorsey and Chris Baggott
| defunct =
| area_served = Worldwide
| key_people = Adam Blitzer, GM & EVP
| industry = Marketing automation
| revenue = $292.3 million (2012){{citation|url=http://phx.corporate-ir.net/External.File?item=UGFyZW50SUQ9MTcyODc2fENoaWxkSUQ9LTF8VHlwZT0z&t=1|title=ExactTarget Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2012|publisher=ExactTarget|access-date=September 25, 2013|date=December 31, 2012}}
| parent = Salesforce
| foundation = Indianapolis, Indiana
December 15, 2000
| location_city = Indianapolis, Indiana
| locations = 14{{citation|url=http://www.exacttarget.com/company/global-offices|publisher=ExactTarget|title=Global Offices}}|
| homepage = [https://www.marketingcloud.com MarketingCloud.com]
}}File:Exact-target-logo.PNGSalesforce Marketing Cloud is a digital marketing automation and analytics software and services platform developed by Salesforce. It was founded in 2000 under the name ExactTarget. The company filed for an IPO in 2007, but withdrew its filing two years later and raised $145 million in funding. It acquired CoTweet, Pardot, iGoDigital and Keymail Marketing. In 2012, it raised $161.5 million in an initial public offering, before being acquired by Salesforce for $2.5 billion in 2013. ExactTarget was renamed Salesforce Marketing Cloud in 2014 after its acquisition by Salesforce.{{Cite web|title=Salesforce Marketing Cloud (ExactTarget), info and compare this Email marketing software|url=https://www.emailvendorselection.com/emailvendors/exacttarget/|access-date=2021-08-17|website=Email vendor selection|language=en-US}}
Corporate history
Salesforce Marketing Cloud was founded under the name ExactTarget in late 2000 by Scott Dorsey, Chris Baggott, and Peter McCormick with $200,000 in financing.{{cite news|date=December 28, 2012|title=Digital marketer ExactTarget splashed onto NYSE|url=http://www.ibj.com/digital-marketer-exacttarget-splashed-onto-nyse/PARAMS/article/38750
|publisher=Indianapolis Business Journal|access-date=September 24, 2013}}{{cite news|date=February 2, 2012|url=http://www.sramanamitra.com/2012/02/02/exacttarget-rides-email-marketing-wave/|title=ExactTarget Rides Email Marketing Wave|first=Sramana|last=Mitra|access-date=October 19, 2014}} Joanna Milliken joined ExactTarget as the first employee in 2001.{{Cite web|url=https://www.prweb.com/releases/former_exacttarget_executive_nominated_for_appointment_to_bookacoach_board/prweb12690686.htm|title = Former ExactTarget Executive Nominated for Appointment to bookacoach Board}} It raised $10.5 million in funding from Insight Venture Partners in 2004. The firm grew from $11.5 million in its second year of operations to $41.1 million in 2006, which was its first profitable year.{{cite news|title=Breaking: ExactTarget plan $86M IPO |url=http://www.ibj.com/article/print?articleId=9213 |date=December 17, 2007 |newspaper=Indianapolis Business Journal |first=Greg |last=Andrews |access-date=September 24, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131218125814/http://www.ibj.com/article/print?articleId=9213 |archive-date=December 18, 2013 }} In December 2007, ExactTarget filed an intent for an initial public offering with the Securities Exchange Commission,{{cite web |url=https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1420850/000104746907010051/a2181554zs-1.htm |title=FORM S-1 REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933 |access-date=2018-10-27}} but withdrew its filing in May 2009.{{cite news|title=The $100 million Revenue Club: ExactTarget|url=https://blogs.wsj.com/venturecapital/2010/02/10/the-100-million-revenue-club-exacttarget/|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|date=February 10, 2010|access-date=September 26, 2013}} Instead, it announced that $70 million in venture funding had been raised for international expansion, which was followed by another $75 million round later that year.{{cite news|date=May 7, 2009|title=E-Mail Marketer ExactTarget Raises $70 Million from Venture Firms; Delays IPO|first=Joseph|last=Tartakoff|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/e-mail-marketer-exacttarget-raises-70-million-from-venture-firms-delays-ipo/|publisher=CBS News|access-date=September 24, 2013}}{{cite news|date=May 14, 2009|title=DigitalGlobe Shares Advance after $279.3 Million IPO|first=Tim|last=Mullaney|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aKOKlc2lssLs
|publisher=Bloomberg|access-date=September 24, 2013}}{{cite news|date=May 7, 2009 |title=ExactTarget secures $70 million venture capital investment |first=Christopher |last=Hosford |url=http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090507/FREE/905079983/1078 |publisher=BtoB Magazine |access-date=September 24, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131213220248/http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20090507%2FFREE%2F905079983%2F1078 |archive-date=December 13, 2013 }} An office was established in London{{cite news|publisher=BrandRepublic|title=Twitter welcomes ExactTarget acquisition of CoTweet|url=http://www.brandrepublic.com/News/987884/Twitter-welcomes-ExactTarget-acquisition-CoTweet/|date=March 3, 2010|access-date=September 24, 2013|first=Gordon|last=MacMillan}} with the acquisition of a UK-based ExactTarget reseller, Keymail Marketing, in September 2009.{{cite news|title=ExactTarget establishes direct European presence with acquisition|url=http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090908/FREE/909089996/1078#|first=Christopher|last=Hosford|newspaper=BtoB Magazine|date=September 8, 2009|access-date=September 24, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131213214742/http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20090908%2FFREE%2F909089996%2F1078|archive-date=December 13, 2013}}{{cite news|title=ExactTarget acquires CoTweet |date=March 2, 2010 |url=http://www.thedeal.com/video/private-capital/exacttarget-acquires-cotweet.php |newspaper=The Deal Pipeline |access-date=September 24, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140302131010/http://www.thedeal.com/video/private-capital/exacttarget-acquires-cotweet.php |archive-date=March 2, 2014 }} The company hired 200 additional employees. In 2010, ExactTarget acquired CoTweet, a company founded in 2008 that develops and markets software for managing multiple Twitter accounts.{{cite news|title=Worlds of Email Marketing and Twitter Collide|date=March 2, 2010|first=Matthew|last=Ingram|publisher=Giga Om|url=https://gigaom.com/2010/03/02/worlds-of-email-marketing-and-twitter-collide/|access-date=October 19, 2014|archive-date=July 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170703215435/https://gigaom.com/2010/03/02/worlds-of-email-marketing-and-twitter-collide/|url-status=dead}}
ExactTarget went public in March 2012{{cite news|date=March 22, 2012 |title=ExactTarget Soars in Debut after Initial Public Offering |first=Anjelica |last=Tan |url=http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-03-22/exacttarget-soars-in-debut-after-initial-public-offering |publisher=Bloomberg |access-date=September 24, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140302044733/http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-03-22/exacttarget-soars-in-debut-after-initial-public-offering |archive-date=March 2, 2014 }} and raised $161.5 million in funding on the New York Stock Exchange.{{cite news|publisher=Reuters|title=Venture-backed IPOs raised $1.5 billion last quarter|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venture-exits-idUSBRE8310PD20120402|date=April 2, 2012|access-date=September 24, 2013}} In late 2012, it acquired a marketing automation vendor, Pardot, for $96 million, and the developers of a product recommendation engine, iGoDigital, for $21 million.{{cite news|date=October 11, 2012|title=ExactTarget Acquires IGoDigital and Pardot|first=Rob|last=Brosnan|url=https://go.forrester.com/blogs/12-10-11-exacttarget_acquires_igodigital_and_pardot/|publisher=Forrester|access-date=September 24, 2013}} In 2012, its revenues grew 40 percent over the preceding year.{{citation|title=Magic Quadrant for CRM Lead Management|date=April 23, 2013|first=Chris|last=Fletcher|publisher=Gartner|url=http://www.gartner.com/id=2445615|access-date=October 19, 2014}} The following June, ExactTarget was acquired by Salesforce for $2.5 billion.{{cite news|date=August 29, 2013|title=Can Salesforce Keep its Cloud Business Growing |first=Arik|last=Hesseldahl|url=http://allthingsd.com/20130829/can-salesforce-keep-its-cloud-business-growing/|publisher=AllThingsD|access-date=September 24, 2013}} A few months later, salesforce.com said it was laying off 200 staff due to overlaps after the ExactTarget acquisition.{{cite news|date=September 4, 2013|title=Salesforce Cuts 200 Jobs from Marketing Cloud Thanks to ExactTarget Acquisition|first=Julie|last=Bort|url=http://www.businessinsider.com/salesforce-fires-200-people-from-marketing-cloud-thanks-to-exacttarget-acquisition-2013-9 |access-date=September 24, 2013}} That September at the ExactTarget Connections conference, salesforce.com said it was integrating ExactTarget into a new division called Salesforce ExactTarget Marketing Cloud.{{cite news|title=Announcing New Partnership, Salesforce and Workday Crash Oracle's Earnings Day|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexkonrad/2013/09/18/salesforce-and-workday-crash-oracles-earnings-day/|first=Alex|last=Konrad|newspaper=Forbes|date=September 18, 2013|access-date=October 31, 2013}}
In May 2014, Scott Dorsey stepped down as CEO of ExactTarget and was replaced by Scott McCorkle.{{cite news|first=Jeff|last=Swiatek|date=June 3, 2014|url=http://www.indystar.com/story/money/2014/06/02/new-exacttarget-ceo-predicts-accelerated-growth/9878777/|newspaper=Indianapolis Star|access-date=July 1, 2014|title=New ExactTarget CEO predicts accelerated growth}} The company was renamed in October 2014 to "Salesforce Marketing Cloud", removing "ExactTarget" from its name, as part of its integration with Salesforce.{{cite news|title=Salesforce drops ExactTarget name from flagship product|date=October 9, 2014|first=Jared|last=Council|url=http://www.ibj.com/articles/49894-salesforce-drops-exacttarget-name-from-flagship-product|newspaper=Indianapolis Business Journal|access-date=October 19, 2014}}
In 2019, Salesforce moved its Marketing Cloud to Microsoft Azure.{{Cite web|date=2019-11-15|title=Salesforce chooses Microsoft Azure for marketing cloud migration|url=https://cloudcomputing-news.net/news/2019/nov/15/salesforce-chooses-microsoft-azure-marketing-cloud-migration/|access-date=2021-07-16|website=Cloud Computing News|language=en-GB}}
Software and services
Salesforce Marketing Cloud develops marketing automation and analytics software for email, mobile, social and online marketing. It also offers consulting and implementation services.{{citation|url=http://www.exacttarget.com/products|publisher=ExactTarget|title=Products |access-date=September 25, 2013}} The software is sold primarily on a multi-year subscription basis. The price of the subscription is based on what features are enabled, the number of users and level of customer service.{{citation|url=https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1420850/000119312512383182/d377364ds1a.htm|publisher=Securities Exchange Commission|title=Amendment No. 1 to Form S-1 Registration Statement}}{{cite news |last1=Jacob |first1=Andrew |title=Digital Marketing Agency |url=https://amperedigital.ca |access-date=24 September 2023}}{{Cite web |last=Baranouski |first=Artsiom |date=2023-08-08 |title=Top 5 Artificial Intelligence Customer Support Systems and Tools |url=https://aranouski.medium.com/top-5-artificial-intelligence-customer-service-tools-and-systems-for-streamlining-customer-support-d2adeaa19f21 |access-date=2023-08-08 |website=Medium |language=en}}
The software's Interactive Marketing Hub was released in 2010, when the software's user interface was re-done. It serves as the software's primary user interface for managing communications and content through different media.{{cite news|title=Twitter CEO Williams Steps Down|first=Antone|last=Gonsalves|date=October 4, 2010|access-date=October 31, 2013|url=http://www.informationweek.com/smb/ebusiness/twitter-ceo-williams-steps-down/227700049|newspaper=InformationWeek}}{{citation|url=http://www.exacttarget.com/video/watch/exacttarget-interactive-marketing-hub|publisher=ExactTarget|title=Interactive Marketing Hub}} The Salesforce Marketing Cloud software is offered in a hosted, online subscription model. The company owns the CoTweet,{{cite news|date=September 17, 2010|title=Twitter Touts Redesign's Advantages for Marketers|first=Alison|last=Diana|url=http://www.informationweek.com/smb/ebusiness/twitter-touts-redesigns-advantages-for-m/227500124
|access-date=September 24, 2013|publisher=InformationWeek}} Pardot, and iGoDigital tools. Its mobile features, as well as many of its workflow and collaboration tools, were released in July 2013.{{cite news|date=September 19, 2013|title=Marketing Automation Provider ExactTarget, on a Roll, Launches New Email Products|first=Barry|last=Levine|url=http://www.cmswire.com/cms/customer-experience/marketing-automation-provider-exacttarget-on-a-roll-launches-new-email-products-022544.php|publisher=CMS Wire|access-date=September 24, 2013}}
Salesforce Marketing Cloud was founded as an email marketing vendor. Its email management software maintains mailing lists and schedules{{cite book|author=Entrepreneur Press|title=Start Your Own E-Business|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I2bg00QEGmgC&pg=PA131|access-date=25 September 2013|date=1 March 2009|publisher=Entrepreneur Press dba Entrepreneur Media, Incorporated|isbn=978-1-61308-065-8|pages=131}} and modifies email messages based on what recipients read, click-on or forward.{{cite book|title=Maximizing Your Sales with Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0|year = 2009|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SfcLAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA229|access-date=25 September 2013|publisher=Cengage Learning|isbn=978-1-59863-837-0|pages=229–}}{{cite book|author=Cindy Krum|title=Mobile Marketing: Finding Your Customers No Matter Where They Are|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qJ9gcF3iG88C&pg=PT112|access-date=September 25, 2013|date=February 25, 2010|publisher=Pearson Education|isbn=978-0-7686-9479-6|pages=112–}}
In September 2014 the company introduced the Journey Builder for Apps, which is intended to create customer lifecycle maps of mobile app users.{{cite news|title=Salesforce ExactTarget Marketing Cloud Gets Personal with Apps|first=Dom|last=Nicastro|date=September 23, 2014|url=http://www.cmswire.com/cms/digital-marketing/salesforce-exacttarget-marketing-cloud-gets-personal-with-apps-026600.php|access-date=October 19, 2014|publisher=CMSWire}} That month, at the September 2014 ExactTarget Connections conference, they announced numerous updates to their software. This included integration with software products owned by Salesforce.com, such as Buddy Media and Social Studio, as well as improvements to workflow and content management tools.{{cite news|title=Salesforce to add content management tools to the ExactTarget Marketing Cloud|url=http://www.techradar.com/news/software/business-software/salesforce-s-exacttarget-marketing-cloud-to-add-content-management-tools-1266663|publisher=TechRadar|first=Juan|last=Martinez|date=September 24, 2014}}
In November 2014 the company released a new version of Social Studio. This release expanded Social Studio beyond Salesforce's Marketing Cloud, where it started, integrating it with the Service Cloud and the Sales Cloud. This enabled sending leads over to the Sales Cloud — the salesperson can see the full context of the company's social media interactions with the lead.{{Cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2014/11/19/salesforce-social-studio-revamp/|title=Salesforce's Revamped Social Studio Includes Tighter Integration with Sales and Customer Service|date=19 November 2014 }}
Operations
As of December 2012, about two thirds of ExactTarget's 1,500 employees were located in Indianapolis.
The company hosts an annual user conference called Salesforce Connections, previously the ExactTarget Connections Event.{{citation|title=Making Connections Through Exact Target|date=September 15, 2011|url=http://blogs.forrester.com/shar_vanboskirk/11-09-15-making_connections_through_exact_target|publisher=Forrester|first=Shar|last=VanBoskirk|access-date=October 19, 2014}} The first Connections event in 2007 attracted 500 attendees, and it has since grown into one of the largest conferences on digital marketing. The event was located in Indianapolis from 2007 until 2014, New York City in 2015, and Atlanta in 2016. It did not occur in 2017 as it was merged with world tours, and was brought back in Chicago in 2018.{{cite news|title=ExactTarget will move huge Connections conference to New York|first=Jeff|last=Swiatek|url=http://www.indystar.com/story/money/2014/09/25/exacttarget-will-move-huge-connections-conference-new-york/16214339/|access-date=October 19, 2014|newspaper=Indianapolis Star|date=September 25, 2014}} As of April 28, 2016 the conference was renamed Salesforce Connections.{{cite web|last1=Simon|first1=Kelley|title=ExactTarget Connections is now Salesforce Connections|url=https://www.marketingcloud.com/blog/exacttarget-connections/|website=Marketingcloud.com|access-date=31 May 2017}}{{Dead link|date=August 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} It merged with Salesforce World Tour in 2017.{{cite web|last1=Liegl|first1=Julie|title=Transforming Salesforce Events in 2017|url=https://www.salesforce.com/blog/2017/01/transforming-salesforce-events-2017.html|website=Salesforce.com|access-date=31 May 2017|date=12 January 2017|archive-date=14 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180714051010/https://www.salesforce.com/blog/2017/01/transforming-salesforce-events-2017.html|url-status=dead}}
References
{{Reflist|2}}
External links
{{Portal|Companies}}
- [https://www.marketingcloud.com Official website]
- [https://stridesol.com/ Stridesol is an all-in-one software solution for your sales and marketing automation.]
Category:Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange
Category:Software companies based in Indiana
Category:Software companies established in 2000
Category:2000 establishments in Indiana
Category:Companies based in Indianapolis
Category:Email marketing software
Category:2012 initial public offerings